Story So Far
by bkabat
Summary: General. Mostly Brooke & Nathan. Nathan & Brooke were both hurt badly in relationships. They decided to keep a secret friendship. Could their friendship turn to more? When Peyton, Lucas, Jake, Haley and Tim go to the Bahamas with them. Complete.. The
1. New Beginnings & Old Endings

Nathan opened his eyes and jumped out of bed. He was going to be late for school, again. Today however was different. Today was his high school graduation. He heard a knock on the front door and knew immediately that it was Haley. She had promised him she would come by before school to make sure he made it on time. "Morning," she smiled when he opened the door in his boxers. Her heart sank. She had returned to Tree hill a year ago, and Nathan wouldn't take her back.

Amazing as It sounded, they were friends. The best part of it was they were good at it. Of course Haley wanted more. She had married him, and she loved him, but Nathan had sworn it could never happen again. She had hurt him. The worst part about it was, she had slept with Chris. Nathan was quick to forgive her. He had once loved every amazing quality she had, but even though he forgave her, he would never forget. Haley let herself in and sat down on the bed. It was finally to the stage where it was not awkward for her to be there. He had never imagined it could be that way.

"I can't believe you are not ready yet!" she exclaimed watching him throw a shirt over his head. "We're graduating from high school and you're just rolling out of bed late, and not even showering!"

"Haley," he said turning to face her. "Save it." Haley shut up and looked out the window. She thought back to the day they got married. They were so happy. How could things have gotten so bad? It was her. It was nice that they were friends, but of course she couldn't be happy at just that, she still loved him.

Nathan opened the car door and let Haley in the passenger side. She thanked him. They drove to school together in silence.

Brooke was walking toward her car when she noticed Nathan and Haley coming into the parking lot together. She sighed. They had the strangest relationship. She hated Haley. She would never forgive her for what she did to Nathan. As much as she wanted to she couldn't. It hit her close to home. She had done almost the exact same thing Lucas had done to her. Only Haley had been married.

It was surreal for Brooke. It was her graduation and nobody was going to be there to witness it. Of course Deb would be sitting in the crowd cheering for Nathan, and Karen would be doing the same for Lucas. Even Haley's parents had come back into town to witness their youngest child walk across the stage to get her diploma. And of course there was Larry Sawyer who would obviously be at his daughter's side fixing her cap and gown. Brooke parents however were still in California.

It took a lot of convincing for them to let Brooke come back. And when she did, she had no where to stay. She was once so cozy, sleeping in Lucas' former bed. Staying under Karen's roof was no longer an option. Lucas was no longer her friend.

He had kissed her before she left. He had promised he could never do to her what he had once done with Peyton. When she came back, Peyton's blonde curls were at his side.

She missed her best friend, but knew it was impossible to ever reunite with her again. She had so easily dismissed her twice for Lucas. The worst part, she even dismissed Jake.

Jake had come back. Jenny was in his arms, and he was now happily her legal guardian. He had won custody. Only when he came back to Peyton, he found that she too was once again with Lucas. The only difference, he wasn't mad. He just wanted to see her happy.

Brooke was forced to live with Erica. It was the last place she had planned to go, but it was quickly transformed into home for her. She was surprised to see just how much she and Erica had in common. Erica too had the poor little rich girl role. Her parents spent most of their time on business trips, and didn't even know that Brooke had been living along side their daughter, in their home.

She had quickly fallen back into the role she once played. She was a tease. Her and Erica spent a lot of time partying but the only difference was Erica was with Mouth. It kept her grounded. After a long night of drinking she would go home and spend the night with him. Brooke however continued to hook up with which ever random guy looked good that night. And lately, she had been spending a lot of time with Nathan.

The two of them had a great friendship. Ever since he left Haley he had become a lot of fun. The two of them were a lot of like. They both stayed up to all hours drinking and partying, but deep down both of them knew, they were incredibly lonely. The only problem was, nobody knew. The two of them hung out alone, and they kept it a secret from everyone. They weren't about to let anyone intrude on their friendship.

Haley climbed out of the car and walked up the stairs with Nathan toward Brooke. She was getting nervous. She hadn't seen the two of them together since they were, well, together. She knew Nate was going to try out the whole friendship thing, but she thought it was impossible. At least with Lucas it was.

"Hey," smiled at Nathan and flashed a fake smile at Haley. "Ready for the last day of high school life?" she asked attempting to find exactly what he was thinking as he stood next to Haley. "Sorry tutor girl, no more books for you."

Haley rolled her eyes and laughed. "Contrary to popular belief Brooke, I'm not too upset about that."

Brooke nodded and waved her hand over her head. She quickly took off away from them and toward her group of cheerleader friends at the front door. She joined them like a group of minions and walked away from the school.

Peyton sighed as she watched her former best friend join the cheerleading squad. She had quit the team shortly after Brooke came back. She thought she would miss it, but she didn't really miss it at all. She had given up all attempts to stay friends with Brooke, and lately, it was killing her. She missed her desperately.

Things with Lucas hadn't been planned. Her heart was with Jake when he left before summer, but somehow once again, things just happened. She honestly didn't think Brooke would be upset. She should have known. However, it didn't make sense. Brooke was the one that left Lucas when she went to California.

Lucas joined her now and the two of them walked to their English class for the final time.


	2. And We Said We Were Friends

_**I decided to post chapter two before everyone read/reviewed chapter one because chapter one seemed to be more of an introduction than anything interesting. I have six chapters written so far, so depending on how many reviews I receive I could always update today. –Brittney**_

**Chapter Two- And we said we were friends.**

Graduation came and went very quickly. It was the graduation party after word that mattered. The most interesting part of it all was, it was at Erica's.

Brooke looked in the mirror for the hundredth time and sighed. "Well I guess this is going to have to do." She said aloud.

Erica rolled her eyes. "Brooke, I told you, you look great!"

Brooke had dressed herself in a short red dress. It looked similar to the dress she had worn so long ago to the basketball party. That was the party where she got drunk and forced Peyton to kiss Lucas. Nice going on her part. She had curled all of her hair into loose ringlets which fell past her back. She did have to admit, she looked amazing. "What do you say we go tap that keg?" she suggested with a smile. She grabbed Erica's hand and dragged her down the stairs to the kitchen.

Graduates arrived quicker than expected. It wasn't long before the house was filled with former classmates. Brooke smiled as their success. Erica and Mouth were sitting at the kitchen table playing a card game and downing shots. Brooke had a few before deciding she should take a little break from drinking. She wanted to remember at least some of the night.

The door opened and another group of people arrived. To Brooke's dismay she came face to face with Lucas, Peyton, Jake and Haley. "Great," she muttered. "Hi guys, thanks for coming." She smiled. "Bla, bla, bla, make yourselves at home I guess," she rolled her eyes.

Peyton sighed and walked into the house. She told Lucas she would be right back and chased Brooke up the stairs to one of the bedrooms and cornered her in, shutting the door behind her. "Brooke, I need to talk to you." She said.

Brooke swung around directly in her face. "I thought I made it clear when I said that I didn't want to talk to you. You've been doing so good at it for so long, don't mess it up now."

Peyton closed her eyes. "Okay look, Brooke, I miss you. I know that I've screwed up a thousand times In the past year, and I know that you are never going to forgive me, but I want you to know right now, that the only reason I got back with Lucas was because you left him. I would have NEVER crossed you again if I would have known it was still going to upset you!" she cried.

Brooke narrowed her eyes in on her. "I didn't leave him! My parents forced me to California before I left. I came back here and I planned on telling him how much he meant to me, that is, until you were back in the picture."

Peyton's eyes lit up. She had never looked at it that way. Lucas had always told her that Brooke left him when he kissed her. They had become such great friends over the summer, things just happened. "Brooke, you have to believe me, I didn't know."

For the first time Brooke looked into Peyton's eyes and saw sincerity. The thought of Lucas telling Peyton she left him wouldn't have been Peyton's fault. Obviously neither of them had control over their emotions. "Wow." She whispered. She reached down for her cup of vodka and quickly downed it. "P. Sawyer, I'm sorry."

This came as a surprise to Peyton. Brooke just said she was sorry. She wasn't really sure where to put that. "You are?"

Brooke nodded, "You're right." She shrugged. "It's not worth this. I don't have any feelings for Lucas anymore. Obviously you do. You should be happy. You didn't even know." She shrugged.

Peyton was still unsure of what to say. She turned around and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Nathan stumbled up the stairs and into one of the bedrooms. He thought it was the bathroom. When he shut the door he found Brooke lying on the bed downing the bottom of a bottle of vodka. "Hey." He said surprised to see her in there. "What are you doing up here by yourself?" he asked.

Brooke sat up and smiled at him. "Thinking," she said honestly. She was amazingly happy to see him. Between him and Erica she felt like she didn't have anybody real to talk to anymore. It was nice having a secret friendship. The two of them had never been close before, but both of them had been hurt in the same type of way, they just bonded to each other. And the best part about it was, there was nothing more to it.

Nathan sat on the bedside and took the bottle from her, taking the very last sip left in the bottom. "Great party," he rolled his eyes. "I haven't seen you all night, have you been up here the whole time?" he asked.

Brooke nodded, "I had a conversation with Peyton, and then I just didn't feel the need to come downstairs."

Nathan grabbed her hand and helped her off the bed. "I know that we're keeping this whole friendship thing a secret but I'll go back downstairs if you do." He offered.

Brooke nodded, "Sounds like a plan." The two of them battled the stairs together, laughing as they almost collapsed to the bottom. Everyone was sitting in a large circle playing a game when they stumbled into the room, empty bottle in hand. They immediately back away from each other and joined the circle on opposite sides.

Haley stood up and walked toward the front door excusing her self from the group. "Tutor girl!" Brooke yelled. "Where are you going?" she giggled.

Haley turned around and looked at her with worry. "Just outside." She said quickly slipping out the door and shutting it. Everyone watched as Nathan got up and went outside to follow her.

Brooke ran to the window and peered outside. "Brooke, leave it alone!" Lucas called out to her. She immediately turned around and faced him. She fought back her urge to cry and laughed instead. "Shut up Lucas." She looked back out the window and yelped as she fell out of the chair.

Peyton stood up to help her off the ground. "Thank you." She said taking her hand. She put her in a head lock and forced her face into the window. Peyton looked outside in dismay. Haley was standing in front of Nathan with none other than Chris.


	3. Then I Woke Up With Him

**Chapter Three- Then I woke up with him.**

Nathan stormed into the house and back up the stairs before anyone had time to react. The party was pretty silent by the point, minus a few people in the kitchen laughing since they didn't know what was going on.

"Nathan!" Lucas yelled attempting to follow him up the stairs. Peyton grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Don't." he snapped at her. He ran up the stairs after his brother.

Brooke stood next to Peyton and watched the scene play out. She turned around just in time to see Haley re-entering the house with Chris. "No way," she whispered to Peyton.

"I'm going to get her out of here," Peyton started to jump forward in fight mode. Brooke stopped her.

"Peyton don't. I got this." She said attempting to walk steadily to the door. "Tutor girl, take him away from here." She said directly in her face.

Haley nervously looked around at everyone staring at them. "What, I wasn't on the invite list?" Chris asked staring at Brooke. "Every other guy you slept with made the invite list."

"What?" Peyton and Haley both asked turning to Brooke who was now in shock.

"In your dreams!" she cried. "Get out! Tutor girl, this is not funny. Why would you do this to Nathan?"

Chris slammed the door and went outside to the car while Haley stood still staring at Brooke. "Do what to Nathan?" she cried. "We're divorced! I didn't do anything to him!" she turned around and followed Chris out the door.

Brooke stood steadying herself on the wall when Peyton turned at her angrily. "Did you sleep with Chris?" she asked. Peyton could feel herself turning red.

Brooke nodded, "When we went to see Haley in New York." She admitted.

Peyton shook her head and stormed upstairs to find Lucas. She was disgusted. She was so down on Peyton for getting with Lucas, when Brooke had been with Chris, the weekend she was with Lucas in New York.

The party calmed down and Brooke was wasted. She stumbled up the stairs of the empty house toward the room she had been staying in. Erica left with Mouth, and she was there by herself. She opened the door and saw Nathan lying on her bed. "Nate," she smiled stumbling over to him and falling next to him on the bed.

He reached over and grabbed her by the arm, pulling her on top of him. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her. Surprised she gasped for breath and pulled away. "What are you doing?" she cried almost too drunk to realize what was going on.

Nathan reached over and pulled her back to him. "We can have a secret friendship, why can't we have a secret relationship too?" he slurred.

Brooke's eyes lit up. As wrong as it felt she was incredibly attracted to him at that moment. She had never really considered it before. Nate was, _Nate. _They had been too much alike for their own good. Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing after all. She let her emotions take control of her and she kissed him back passionately.

Sunlight rose threw the window and woke Brooke from a light sleep. She felt down for her blanket but realized it was missing. She touched her body and realized that she was naked. "Oh no." she said quietly to herself. She looked at the body lying next to her, also fully undressed. It was Nathan. "Wake up!" she cried, "Nathan wake up!" she shook him. She was covered in only a sheet.

Nathan rolled over and faced Brooke frantically shaking him. He jumped up quickly realizing he was fully exposed and reached for a pillow to cover him self. Brooke covered her eyes. "What the hell?" he asked grabbing his pants from the floor and putting them on.

Brooke shook her head, almost in tears. "I guess we.." she started.

"Well obviously." Nathan agreed. "But… how? Why?"

Brooke felt a little hurt by this. She didn't exactly remember what happened either, but the way he reacted to it showed he definitely didn't want it. "I don't know."

Awkwardly they both got dressed. Nathan was about to leave when Brooke stopped him. "Nate?" she called. "I'm sorry I guess."

Nathan nodded but didn't speak. He shut the door behind him and drove home.


	4. He Looked Like A Love Sick Puppy

**Chapter Four-He looked like a love sick puppy**

Nathan finished washing his car and climbed inside to go to the grocery store. It had been almost two weeks since the night of his graduation and he hadn't seen anyone from school, including Brooke. He reached for his ringing cell phone and saw Brooke's number. He hit the ignore button and continued driving. She had called him a few times, but he didn't really want to talk to her.

Brooke threw the phone across the room with anger. She didn't know why this was such a big deal to her. She had hooked up with random guys plenty of times, why did this upset her so much? She picked up her car keys and decided she would head to his house.

Nathan was carrying groceries in when she pulled into his driveway blocking him in. She smiled at him and grabbed a bag from the backseat carrying it into his house. Ever since his dad passed away when his dealership suddenly burned down, Nathan had done a lot to help out his mom. "Hey," she smiled at him once inside the house.

Nathan sat the last bag down and took the one she was holding. "Oh hey," he said surprised to see her. "Sorry I haven't called you back," he lied.

Brooke rolled her eyes. "Nathan, it's obvious you are avoiding me."

Nathan shrugged, "I guess you got me. I'm sorry."

Brooked nodded, "Its okay. Do you have time to talk?" The two of them sat down at the kitchen table.

"Look Brooke, you don't have to try and explain anything, what's happened, happened. There is nothing we can change about it."

"Nate?" she said with worry in her voice. "Can I tell you something?" He shook his head yes. "I'm not sure why, but I've been really upset about this all week because well, I don't know if it was such a bad thing."

"What?" Nathan exclaimed.

"Okay obviously you do."

Nathan didn't say anything for a few minuets. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, we're good as friend's right? Why couldn't something work between us? We've both been through the same type of things,"

Nathan wasn't sure what to say. He had never really thought about dating Brooke. He actually hadn't really thought about her much at all. Nobody even knew they were friends, how would they react to them being something more? It was true though, he had been pretty torn up about what happened. It's not like he hadn't slept with other girls since Haley. Why would it matter if he slept with Brooke if it didn't mean something more? "I don't know."

"Okay." She said. She was unusually nervous. She stood up and walked to the door. "I'll see you around Nate."

"Brooke wait." He called out to her. He stood up and walked to the door. She stood looking up at him. He looked down on her and smiled. "Never mind." He sighed. He watched her leave. He had no idea how to control the way he was feeling.

Lucas walked onto the basketball court where he found Nathan shooting hoops by himself. "Hey." He said grabbing the ball from him and throwing it into the hoop.

Nathan nodded and took the ball back. "Look man, I just want to shoot some hoops." He said ignoring the fact that Lucas was even there.

Lucas nodded, "I know, I was just thinking maybe you wanted to talk about what happened graduation night." He suggested.

Nathan suddenly grew nervous. Did Brooke say something to him? Of course she didn't, she hated Lucas. "What?"

"With Haley"

"Oh. No, not really."

"Alright" Lucas accepted. The two of them spent over an hour without speaking.

"What was she thinking?" Nathan asked out of the blue. "Chris? Why would she let Chris come to our graduation?"

Lucas shook his head. "I'm not really sure man. I think she's just trying to move on with her life. It wasn't the best way to do it, but you want to move on too don't you?"

"I guess." He nodded. "I don't know man, I just cant figure all this shit out."

Brooke picked up a black lace tank top and put it on the counter of the store. "Two hundred and ten dollars." The sales woman told are.

"Two hundred and ten dollars?" she exclaimed. "Never mind," she sighed. She turned around and walked toward the exit of the store. She stormed into the food court and bought herself a smoothie. She set her head on the table and closed her eyes. Why was she feeling so terrible? Maybe it was partly because she shopping alone. Or maybe it was because of the events earlier in the day with Nathan. She couldn't believe she had suggested being together with him. That was the worst idea she ever came up with in her life. They were friends, and they made a mistake. Now all she wanted to do was get their friendship back.

"Hey," she heard Nathan's voice smile in front of her. She lifted up her head as he sat down. He plopped a brown Gucci bag on the table.

Brooke's eye lit up as she ripped into the bag. He had bought the tank top for her. "Oh my God!" she cried grabbing him and hugging him. "What is this for?"

"For earlier, I'm sorry for the way I reacted to what you said." He apologized.

"It's okay. It was stupid anyway."

Nathan nodded. He knew it wasn't stupid. He just couldn't get a handle of his feelings just yet so he agreed with her. "Do you think it's possible to get our secret friendship back?"

"Well of course it is puppy!" she had given him this nickname when they first started hanging out together. He was always depressed and drinking over Haley like a love sick puppy. It almost reminded her of her start with Lucas. She had called him Broody and he had called her cheery. Nathan however never called her anything other than Brooke, and that was fine with her.

"Want go get some lunch?" he suggested. Brooke took his arm and nodded.


	5. I Had A Dream About This

**Chapter Five-I had a dream about this**

Peyton and Haley decided to go to Applebee's. The two of them hadn't talked since graduation. Peyton wasn't mad at Haley. She wasn't happy about Chris coming to the party but she couldn't be mad. Haley was young, of course she makes mistakes. Peyton was the last person to judge her cheating on Nathan.

Haley ordered an appetizer and the two of them sat drinking lemonade and eating it together. "What are you doing tonight?" Peyton asked. It was the first Friday night Peyton didn't have plans.

"I'm not sure, I was thinking about going to Charleston for the weekend," she told her. "You could go with me if you want to." She suggested.

"What's in Charleston?" Haley asked.

"My grandma was buried there." She told her.

"You know, you've still never explained to me what happened with that woman who said she was your mom."

Peyton shrugged. It was a hard subject to talk about. The woman had showed up at her door step and claimed to be her mother. The truth was, she wasn't. She had made a mistake. She had gotten pregnant around the same time her real mother did. "She gave up her daughter for adoption; apparently she had also named her Peyton. It was just a big mistake."

"Do you think that I should stop talking to Chris?" Haley questioned. "I feel horrible about Nathan and I. We just got our friendship back, and then he showed up at the party. Now I feel like Nathan and I will never be friends."

"You know Haley? I don't know. Sometimes I wonder if it's better of that you and Nathan don't get your friendship back. It just seems too weird. But if you want your friendship back, only you can decide what's more important."

Haley took a drink of her lemonade and started choking. She quickly covered her head and looked at the wall. "Peyton," she choked motioning toward the door.

Peyton glanced at the door and noticed Brooke and Nathan walking in. Brooke was holding a Gucci bag and her purse, and Nathan was heading to the bathroom. "Whoa." She laughed. "Why are you hiding?"

"I don't want them to see me!" she cried.

"I wonder why they're together anyway." Peyton thought out loud. They had come down the stairs together at the graduation party too. Something weird was going on.

Brooke waited for Nathan to come back from the bathroom. The two of them sat in a table not far from Peyton and Haley, but neither of them saw them. "Want a cocktail?" Brooke suggested pulling her fake ID out of her wallet.

Nathan smiled. "At least you're good for something."

The two of them sat in the restaurant for a while drinking, eating and laughing hysterically. Peyton and Haley couldn't resist staying and watching the two of them in awe. If they didn't know any better, they would say that Brooke and Nathan were secretly dating.

"I don't think I can watch this anymore." Haley said grabbing her purse and tossing some money on the table.

Peyton quickly followed suite. They were just about out of the restaurant when Brooke spotted them. "Oh my God Nathan, there's Peyton and Haley!" she exclaimed. "Do you think they saw us?"

Nathan nodded laughing. "Probably." He put some money on the table and grabbed Brooke's hand dragging her behind him. "Let's go talk to them."

"Nathan, then they'll see us hanging out together. I thought we were keeping this secret?"

Nathan stopped laughing for a second. "Oh who the hell cares." He slurred. "Let's go."

When the two of them finally caught up to Peyton and Haley they almost collapsed on the ground in the parking lot. "Tutor girl! Peyton!" Brooke yelled throwing her hand up for a high five.

"Oh Hey Brooke," Peyton said. "I didn't even see you in there." She lied.

Nathan burst out laughing. "What?" Brooke asked him with a silly look on her face. "What's so funny?"

Haley stood uncomfortably not saying anything.

"Nothing." Nathan laughed. "Sorry."

"So, what are you two doing?" Haley asked still finding it incredibly odd to see them together.

"Well," Brooke started. "Nathan and I have had this secer…" she started to say but Nathan covered her mouth to stop her.

"Brooke was shopping, I came to pick of a present for my mom's birthday. We ran into each other, and decided to have some drinks."

Peyton nodded and glanced at Haley unconvinced. "Interesting." She tried not to laugh.

"P. Sawyer, wipe that grin of your face!" Brooke scolded. She hadn't even noticed the nickname she once called her former best friend slipped from her mouth.

This also surprised Peyton but she didn't make any gestures to make it anymore awkward than it already was. "Haley and I are going to Charleston for the weekend to see my mom." She told them. "I guess we'll see you two around."

Brooke looked at her confused as the two of them walked away. She looked up at Nathan and shrugged. "Peyton's grandma is dead."

"Wow Brooke, I think she meant her grandma's grave." He laughed at her stupidity.

"Oh!" Brooke nodded. She dragged him away from the parking lot. "Let's go back to your apartment and get some more liquor." She suggested.

Brooke lifted her head from the carpet and rolled over to find Nathan lying on the couch above her. "Hey!" she cried "Why did I have to sleep on the floor and you got to sleep on the couch. You have a bed!" she woke him up.

Nathan looked at her and laughed. He had a horrible headache. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed two bottles of water, handing one to Brooke. "Here."

Brooke took the bottle and thanked him. "Hey Nathan," she said slightly. "You know that our trip is in two weeks right?" she asked him.

"I know." He sighed. He remembered the conversation over a year ago. It was right after Brooke had left for the summer. Deb had given Lucas and Nathan a hundred thousand dollars of Dan's money after he died. They decided they were going to go on a trip. They were going to the Bahamas. Lucas had invited Brooke, and of course Brooke invited Peyton. Peyton was with Jake so she made a big deal out of inviting him. Nathan was still with Haley, and obviously Haley was Lucas's best friend so she would be coming along. He had also invited Tim. The plane tickets were non refundable, so there was no way out of it. "Its going to be a disaster you know?"

Brooke nodded, "Of course it is." She laughed. She suddenly felt the urge to kiss him. Why was she feeling this way? It was Nathan. Nathan was the last person she should be attracted to.

Nathan smiled and cleaned the beer cans off the coffee table. "I suppose you should probably go. I have to shower and stuff."

"Or I could join you." She suggested jokingly.

Nathan closed his eyes and smiled. "You know, that suddenly reminds me of a dream I once had."

"Oh really?" she said seductively. "Care to make your dreams come true?"

Nathan wasn't sure what to say. At that moment, of course he wanted to make his dream come true, but it was going against everything he said the other day about being just friends. He walked over to Brooke and pulled her against him, kissing her passionately. When he pulled away both of them were silent.

"Whoa." She smiled ripping his shirt over his head. She pushed him toward the bathroom and almost knocked him over pushing him into the shower. The water was freezing when they turned it on but neither of them cared.

By the time the water heat up it was cold again. They had used every inch of hot water before they were finished. Brooke wrapped herself in a towel and threw one at Nathan. She hadn't spoken to him since they got out of the shower.

Nathan made himself a piece of toast and sat down on the couch turning on ESPN. Brooke gathered her clothes and headed toward the door. "Hey, where are you going?" Nathan called to her as she was about to leave.

"Um, home?" she said. "Or, well Erica's I guess."

"Why?"

"I don't know?" she shrugged. "What else would I do?"

Nathan motioned for her to sit down next to him. She plopped down on the couch and looked him. He reached over and wrapped his arm around her. "Let's just stay here and watch a movie?" he smiled.

Brooke could feel her heart racing in circles. She had thought that Nathan just randomly wanted to hook up with her. She never imagined he actually wanted to be with her. For the first time since Lucas, this thought didn't scare her.


	6. Arrivals & Liquor

**Chapter Six-Arrivals and Liquor**

Nathan's apartment was dark when everyone gathered in his driveway. It was the day they left for the Bahamas. They would be gone for a week.

"I hope he's here." Jake said. He threw his bags down on the pavement. It was beginning to rain.

Nathan pulled into the driveway. Brooke was in the passenger seat. Everyone turned to look at the two of them. Nathan had borrowed Deb's Suburban to drive to the airport. "Wonder what they were doing?" Tim perked up trying to make a joke out of it but failing.

Nathan climbed out of the truck and walked over to the group. "Ready?"

Lucas started grabbing his bags to load into the truck and caught Brooke's eye. She had her bare feat on the dash of the truck and was flipping threw a magazine.

Lucas, Peyton and Haley climbed into the far back seats. Jake and Tim climbed into the middle row and Nathan locked all of the doors. "P. Sawyer!" Brooke said with excitement turning around. "I was looking threw this magazine, and I found the perfect pair of sandals for you. So I ordered them" she said reaching down and throwing a box toward her head.

Peyton ducked. "Gosh Brooke, are you trying to kill me?"

"Don't think I haven't considered it!" she joked. Peyton's smile faded "What? I'm kidding!"

The tension in the vehicle lightened as they neared the airport. Brooke was rambling on and on about clothes as she flipped threw her magazine. Peyton had a headset on and was listening to music. She had a headphones extension and Lucas was listening with her. Haley was reading a book and Tim and Jake were arguing about basketball players.

Everyone checked their bags and got in line outside the gate to wait to be boarded. Peyton looked down at her boarding pass and wondered where she was sitting. She walked down the isle of the plane and found a seat near the back. She was happy to find out Jake would be sitting next to her, and Tim was on the other side. She wanted a chance to finally talk to Jake about what was going on with her and Lucas.

Haley sat down in her seat against the window when she looked up and saw Nathan sit down next to her. "Great" she muttered.

Lucas and Brooke glanced at each other knowing what was to come. "Figures." She cried. "I suppose we did actually like each other when we booked the tickets. Oh wait, no, I like you, but you liked my best friend!"

Lucas didn't say anything but instead just sat in his seat. Brooke refused to sit down. "Hey tutor girl, I'll let you read my magazine if you switch seats with me!" she called to her. Haley turned around and rolled her eyes. She held up the book she was reading. "Fine!" Brooke wined walking over to her. She handed her a fifty dollar bill. "Fifty bucks?"

"Deal!" Haley exclaimed taking the money and hoping over Nathan to sit with Lucas. Lucas rolled his eyes at her.

"What, you have to be paid to sit with me?"

"Just thought I'd take what I could get," she smiled buckling her seat belt.

Brooke sat down with Nathan and grinned happily at him. "You know Brooke, sometimes it's possible to get your way without paying people." He told her

"I know! I just thought tutor girl might try to make the moves on you again so I had to take care of that." She laughed resting her head on the window. "Don't look at me while I sleep." She warned, "Or you won't wake up when you fall asleep."

Nathan nodded and smiled. "Whatever you say."

The plane landed kind of hard and woke Brooke up from a deep sleep. "We're here already?" she asked surprised. Nathan laughed at her frantically looking around the now half empty plane. She had the slight smear of eye liner across her face. He reached over and wiped it from her eye. "Thank you!" She smiled.

Lucas watched the two of them sitting across the isle from him. It looked to him like they had been together forever. Both of them claimed they were just friends, but since when were Brooke and Lucas friend's anyway?

Haley caught a glimpse of what Lucas was looking at and looked away. "Do you think there is something between him?" she asked not really paying attention to anything before that.

Lucas shrugged. "Jealous?"

"No, I am not!"

Lucas didn't believe her. He grabbed his book and stood up to leave the plane.

The hotel was amazing. They had taken a boat from the airport to get to the island they would be staying on. The building was brown and secluded. The beach surrounded it and a volley ball court was being used in front of it. Nathan and Lucas walked to the front desk to check in.

"Mr. Nathan Scott," the man said handing him a bunch of room keys. Nathan looked down at the keys engraved with everyone's pictures on them and their room numbers. "You must have this key to get in your room, and it must be you using it." The man explained.

"What do you mean?" Lucas asked.

"The key has your picture on it. You scan the picture against the door, and you press your thumb finger against the mini camera to enter the room." He explained. "Our hotel is very concerned with safety. We want to make sure nobody but the people who are assigned to the room enter."

"I didn't even know that was possible." Jake chimed in grabbing his key.

Brooke looked down at the room number on her key. Conveniently it matched the room number on Lucas' key. "Oh, no way." We have to change the rooms."

"Sorry the man said, but it's a $100 fee to have the room keys remade."

Brooke threw the key in her purse and stormed toward the elevator.

Nathan knew that meant he was going to be sharing a room with Haley. He wasn't really excited about that fact, but at the same time, it would be nice to try and talk to her. "It looks like our room has three beds." Tim piped into Nathan's thoughts.

"What?"

"Looks like you, me and Haley."

Nathan rolled his eyes. "Figures."

Peyton knew that she would be sharing with Jake and she didn't mind at all. She was glad they were able to keep their friendship after everything happened. She would always love Jake. He had a place in her heart for eternity and so did Jenny.

Brooke threw her bags down on her bed and watched Lucas enter the room. It reminded her of the day at the cheer competition when she had to share a room with Peyton. Peyton had done so much to get their friendship back that weekend. It really upset her that she didn't even try anymore. She missed her best friend too.

"Can you go in the bathroom so I can change?" Brooke asked Lucas as he flipped on the tv.

"Why can't you go in the bathroom and change?"

"Because stupid!"

"Because…"

"Please?"

Lucas finally agreed and went into the bathroom. He knew that if he didn't the week would just continue to get worse.

Brooke finally decided on a dark red bikini. She covered her bottoms with a short blue frilled jean skirt and a pair of dark red flip flops with red hearts on them. "You can come out now!" She called to Lucas. She was standing in front of the mirror putting her hair into a ponytail.

Lucas watched her stare at herself. She looked amazing. He cursed himself for thinking that. He was with Peyton, but right now he couldn't resist the urge to look at Brooke.

"What are you looking at?" she cried catching him.

"Nothing," he lied looking away.

"That's what I thought," she said barging passed him and into the hallway. She banged on Peyton's door.

Peyton came out dressed in a dark green bikini top and a pair of jeans. "Hi"

"Hey!" Brooke smiled. "Come on P. Sawyer were going to the beach."

Peyton stopped her from practically dragging her outside. "Brooke I can't!"

"What?" she asked now looking incredibly angry. She looked passed her and noticed Haley standing next to the bed with Jake in a blue tank top and a pair of jeans. It was clear that she was wearing a bikini beneath it.

"I promised Haley."

Brooke rolled her eyes. "Fine tutor girl, you can come too."

The three girls found a spot on the beach where the sun was brightly shining. None of them had told anyone where they were going. Brooke set up an umbrella over her towel in the sand.

"What are you doing?" Haley asked.

"Tutor girl, you're supposed to be the smart one." She shook her head. "Obviously I'm setting it up so the sun doesn't hit me."

Haley and Peyton exchanged glances. "I thought that we were tanning." Peyton questioned.

Brooke shook her head. "You're tanning. I'm drinking." She smiled pulling out a bottle of tequila and taking a large drink. "Thirsty?"

Haley looked disgusted at the way Brooke down the tequila. "No thank you!"

"Well good, because I was asking Peyton." She snapped.

Haley rolled over on her blanket and attempted to fall asleep.

Peyton took the bottle and took a large drink. She made a disgusted face and handed it back to Brooke. "That is horrible!" she cried.

Haley woke up when she felt something crawling across her leg. She jumped off her towel and saw nothing there. Peyton and Brooke were gone. She stood up looking around and noticed the cabana bar across the beach. Two girls were standing on top of the bar dancing. "Why do I have a feeling.." she started to say to herself when the guys approached her.

"Hey Hales, where's Peyton and Brooke?" Lucas asked.

Haley started to tell them when they heard the cheers coming from the bar. Everyone looked over to see Peyton and Brooke drinking from a bottle and kissing each other on top of the bar.

"Oh, My, God." Tim muttered.

Lucas, Nathan and Jake exchanged glances and took off running toward the bar.


	7. Ready To Go Boyfriend?

**Chapter Seven-Ready to go boyfriend?**

Brooke felt hands around her waste as she was lifted down from the bar. She smiled when she saw Nathan's face. "Hey!" she giggled lying in his arms as he carried her across the beach.

"What are you doing?" he asked her angrily. He set her down and she was now standing in front of him.

"What do you mean?" she asked unsure exactly why he was so upset.

"Your were dancing on a bar and kissing Peyton!" he exclaimed. "In front of a million guys!"

Brooke looked at him with question in her eyes. She knew that she was drunk, but it didn't cover the knotting feeling in her stomach. He was really mad at her. She bent down into the sand and got sick. Tears were falling from her eyes when she stood back up and faced Nathan.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his eyes becoming softer now. He held her arm so she didn't fall down.

"I don't feel so good." She said honestly. She started to collapse in his arms but he caught her and picked her back up. He carried her back to his room and set her on his bed. She rolled onto her side and looked up at him. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Nathan sat down on the bed and held her head in his lap playing with her hair. "It's okay," he whispered back to her. "Are you feeling a little better now?"

Brooke nodded but felt herself fall asleep.

Haley entered her room with a towel over hear head. She was still in her bikini when she walked passed Nathan. "Oh hey, I didn't know you were in here." She said surprised. She bent over in front of him to get dry clothes from the drawers. He noticed the tattoo of his jersey number on her back. He fought back the tears forming in his eyes and nodded at her.

"It Peyton okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, she's fine, why?" she said concerned looking down at Brooke lying on the bed.

"Brooke was just really sick when I brought her up here. I wanted to make sure they didn't have alcohol poisoning or something." He told her.

"No, Peyton's pretty drunk, but she's not sick." Nathan nodded. "We're all going to go down and get dinner, are you going to come?"

Nathan looked at Brooke and shook his head. "I don't think I should leave her here alone in case she gets sick again."

Now Haley had the urge to cry. Watching her husband take care of another girl was horrifying. The fact that it was Brooke Davis made it even worse. Brooke hated her. "Okay." She said sadly. "Well, if she wakes up, I'm sure everyone would like you both to join us."

Nathan shook Brooke slightly after Haley left. "Brooke?" he whispered. "Everyone is going to dinner; do you want to get some food? Sober yourself up a little bit?" he asked her.

Brook groggily stood up from the bed and smiled. She looked horrible and she knew it but she didn't care. "I want a quesadilla!"

Nathan couldn't help but laugh. She was still drunk, that was obvious. "I don't think a quesadilla is the best idea." He smiled.

"Fine." She muttered. "Are you still mad at me?" she asked.

Nathan shook his head. "No,"

"I thought you would want to see me kiss Peyton anyway," she giggled.

"Oh, I do, but not in front of a hundred other guys too."

"I guess that makes sense." She sighed. "Ready to go boyfriend?" she locked her arms around him.

Nathan just smiled and followed with her. She had called him boyfriend. He wasn't used to that. Yes they had been spending a lot of time together but he hadn't really considered calling her his girlfriend yet. The thought of it scared the hell out of him. He looked down at her with her head against his shoulder. If they walked downstairs like that everyone would know about them. Although, maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. She looked so perfect on his arm. He just couldn't help think of Haley.


	8. Second Chances?

_I just want to thank the reviewers! If you wouldn't have reviewed the story I might not be so eager to write today. I have 8 hours at work today, and nothing to do, so there should most def be a lot of updates. I'm glad you like it. It's most def a Brooke/Nathan story  Thanks for the suggestions also  -Brittney _

**Chapter Seven-Second Chances?**

Lucas unrolled his napkin and watched as Brooke and Nathan entered the hotel restaurant. Brooke had her head against Nathan's shoulder and her arm around his. It was clear that she was still drunk but then again, so was Peyton.

He couldn't help but be jealous of the way Brooke clung to Nathan. It hadn't been long ago when the two of them were together. He had quickly gone back and forth between Brooke and Peyton, and everyday he seemed to question it.

He looked over at Peyton who was tearing apart a muffin and eating it with her fingers. He couldn't help but laugh at her. He wanted to see her happy, and it seemed like getting her friendship back with Brooke would definitely cheer her up a little bit.

Brooke sat down at the table just as someone was taking stage at the front of the restaurant. Apparently they had made it just in time for Karaoke night in the hotel. Brooke's eyes lit up. "Tutor girl, it's like your calling!" she said clapping her hands together in excitement.

Haley's eyes fell. She didn't want to sing karaoke. As sad as it sounded she almost felt like karaoke was beneath her. Plus she thought it might be awkward for Nathan. Nathan was the one who made her go for her dream in the first place. "No thanks," she declined politely.

"Come on!" Brooke squealed. "Do it!"

Peyton noticed Brooke's pleas and Nathan looked incredibly uncomfortable. For the sake of entertainment she volunteered herself as the victim. She stood up and started to walk toward the stage.

"P. Sawyer what on earth are you doing?" she cried as her former friend made her way in front of of the gathering crowed.

Peyton took the microphone and stood in front of everyone. "I actually was hoping that my friend Brooke Davis would join me in a duet!" she motioned for her.

Brooke suddenly covered her face. "You have got to be kidding me!" she cried. Nathan was pulling her by the arm and dragging her to the stage un-willingly. She heard the tune to "Girls just want to have fun" start to play and as she passed Haley she grabbed her arm too. "Tutor girl, if I'm doing this, you are too!"

Haley followed Brooke to the stage and took one of the microphones. She held it a distance between Brooke and sang lightly.

By the time the song was finished the three girls were singing their hearts out and dancing around the stage. Nathan couldn't help but smile. His ex wife and new girlfriend were smiling at each other and getting along. The weirdest things happened with tree hill relationships.

Brooke slipped her towel off and slid into the hot tub. It was five in the morning and she had woken up from a deep sleep alone in her room. She wasn't sure where Lucas was but she assumed he stayed with Peyton. She had a horrible headache but knew it had to be from the alcohol.

There was a slight breeze in the air as the bubble from the hot tub roared. Glancing around at her surroundings she felt tears coming to her eyes. The view was amazing. She was only feet from the hotel, but the dark water in front of her was peaceful. The white sand beach looked black from the night.

She closed her eyes and suddenly felt extremely cold. She was sitting in a large tub of hot water yet she was freezing. "Mind if I join you?" she heard a voice behind her. When she opened her eyes she saw Lucas standing in a pair of baby blue swim trunks.

She shook her head letting him know it was alright for him to come in. The two of them sat in silence for a few moments before Lucas spoke. "I miss you Brooke."

"Excuse me?" she asked him surprised at what he just said.

"I miss you." He told her again.

"I cannot believe you are saying this to me." She whispered. Peyton and I might not be close like we used to, but I would still never do something like that to her. I don't sneak around behind peoples back's like you do!"

"Then what are you doing with Nathan?" he asked.

Brooke shook her head. "My relationship with Nathan is none of your business!" she scolded. She stood up from the hot tub and wrapped herself in her towel. "This conversation is over."

"So you admit it, you have a relationship?" he called after her. She didn't answer, instead she slammed the door of the hotel room and went back to sleep.

Tim jumped into the pool and splashed all the girls sitting on the side of the deck. The sun had just come up and he and Jake decided they would check out the female's pool side. "You ass!" one of the girls yelled at him. "You got me wet!"

"Come in here and I'll get you really wet!" he insinuated.

The girl looked at him disgusted, grabbed her towel and stormed away. Jake sat with his feet in the pool laughing. "Nice try."

Tim rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He muttered. "She was ugly anyway."

Jake just laughed. He could see Peyton walking out of the hotel across the beach. Tim quickly noticed his glances and laughed. "You want her and you know it."

Jake shook his head. "Obviously." He jumped into the pool away from him.

Peyton saw Jake and Tim in the pool and tried avoiding that area at all costs. She was crabby, and she wasn't in the mood for Tim's stupid humor. Plus she was avoiding Jake. Sharing a hotel room with him was nice, but it quickly reminded her of the relationship she so quickly tried to forget. She would always love him, and lately, she was beginning to miss him more than ever. She felt guilty for thinking that way while she was with Lucas.

"P. Sawyer, wait up!" Brooke called from behind her. She sighed. The last person she wanted to see besides Jake right now was Brooke. "Where are you headed so quickly? Brooke asked trying to catch her breath.

"I was actually going to find some breakfast."

"Oh thank God, I'm starving!" Brooke patted her bare stomach. She was wearing the same dark red bikini she had been wearing the day before.

Peyton nodded. "You can come along I guess."

"Well of course I can!" Brooke smiled. "And anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something." She shrugged.

"Great." Peyton lied.

The girls found a cabana to eat their breakfast under on the beach. Peyton was eating a bowl of cereal and Brooke was twisting the top of her apple into little pieces.

"I'm in love with Nathan." Brooke blurted out of no where.

""What?" Peyton smiled completely surprised. She had seen that they had been hanging out an awful lot but Brooke being in love with him? She never expected that.

"I know it sounds crazy. It's actually kind of sick and twisted considering he's Lucas's brother. But then again you dated Nathan, and then you went to Lucas. And then Jake, but now Lucas again. So technically since I haven't been with Jake, I'm not quite as sick and twisted as you right?"

"Wow, slow down speedy. Let's go back. Nathan?" she couldn't contain her laughter. "I thought you hated Nathan."

"Well I did, but okay, you can't tell anyone this. We've been friends for a really long time now. We just kept it a secret. And then graduation night, we kind of.. Became a little more than friendly if you know what I mean. Then he didn't talk to me for a while, then he told me about this dream he had about me taking a shower with him. So then we made the dream come true, and then I guess we just started, being together."

"Whoa, way too much detail!" Peyton stopped her. She wasn't sure what to say. The thought of Brooke and Nathan was weird, but it she should have seen it. They were a lot alike.

"Wow Brooke, well I guess if you're happy that's great."

Brooke smiled. "You can't tell anyone though P. Sawyer or I'll kill you!"

Peyton just nodded. She wanted to tell Brooke the way she was feeling about Jake, but decided she wasn't ready to commit that information to her just yet.


	9. I Will Run Away

**Chapter Nine-I will run away.**

Brooke burst into Nathan and Haley's room as soon as she noticed the door was cracked. Haley was on the bed and Nathan was in the bathroom. It sounded like he was in the shower. She opened the door which she was surprised to find out was unlocked. Nathan quickly grabbed his towel and covered himself. "Brooke." He said surprised to see her. Brooke pushed him against the shower wall and kissed him. Nathan pulled her away from him. "Brooke what are you doing?" he whispered. "Haley is right outside the door."

"I don't care about Haley." She smiled she undid the back of her bikini top and kissed him again. Once again she felt him pull her away from him. "What's the problem?" she asked getting upset.

"I just, I don't think it's the best idea right now." He said handing her back her bikini top. "Not with Haley outside the door."

"Nathan, how long is this going to be a secret for?" she asked.

Nathan shrugged. "I don't know Brooke. Right now I don't care. I don't even know what 'this' is." He said. He threw his shirt over his head and quickly put his pants on. He walked out of the bathroom leaving Brooke slumped against the wall.

Brooke was unable to disguise the tears coming down her face. She didn't want to walk out of the bathroom while Haley was sitting there, and she definitely didn't want Nathan to see her cry. She did her best as she looked at herself in the mirror and stormed through the bedroom, completely ignoring both of them.

As soon as she left the room the tears began to fall again. She had just told Peyton she loved him. She knew she shouldn't have gotten herself into this torture. She had given her heart away too quickly. The Scott boys sure knew how to stomp on a girls feelings. She walked quickly away from the hotel, away from the beach and as far as she possibly could to get away from there.

Tim and Jake joined Peyton, Lucas, Haley and Nathan in the lobby of the hotel. Everyone had agreed to meet there before dinner. They were going to dinner together at the "Blue Lagoon" and then they planned to go to the "Atlantis Casino".

The Blue Lagoon was an upper class restaurant in the Bahamas. It was a perfect mix of fine dining. A strict dress code was enforced. Peyton was dressed in a dark blue strapless dress. It hung slightly above her knees, and she wore a pair of matching flip flops. Her hair was up in a mess of curls in the back of her head. Haley wore her hair pin straight. She was dressed in a long black shirt and a light purple tank top. She had high lacy shoes on. The guys looked almost as if they were in uniform. They were wearing black pants, and white button up shirts. Nathan however had decided to break code and wore a cream colored shirt.

"Where is Brooke?" Tim asked noticing she wasn't standing with them.

"She wasn't in the room. I thought she was getting ready with one of you guys," Lucas explained.

Nathan somehow knew that the reason she wasn't there was because of him. Part of him just didn't care. He had really started to care about. That was until Haley told him about Chris. They had been sitting in the hotel room before Brooke had burst into his shower. Haley told him about Brooke sleeping with Chris the night Lucas went to bring Haley home.

Peyton immediately glanced at Nathan as if he would know where she was. "Have you seen her?" she asked him.

He shook his head oblivious to the fact that she knew what was going on with them. Or for that matter, what was going on with them previously. "I thought she was in her room. I haven't seen her all day." He lied.

"That's not true!" Haley jumped in. "You had a conversation with her in the bathroom." She smiled.

Nathan gave her an annoyed look. Why was Haley even getting into it? "Oh yeah, she came by this morning to see if I had any hair gel." He lied.

Peyton rolled her eyes. Brooke didn't use hair gel. She laughed at him but didn't draw any attention to it.

Lucas also noticed Nathan's lies. He had already questioned there friendship, and now he was even more into it. "Right."

"I guess she's not coming." Jake stated the obvious.

"Let's go with out her." Tim suggested.

Everyone agreed with this idea. They weren't going to wait around for Brooke. She was probably at the bar drinking or something.

Brooke felt herself collapse in the sand. It was getting dark now. She had been walking for hours and had no idea where she was going. She laid down looking up at the stars when she heard footsteps coming toward her. She looked up to find a tall dark man standing above her. "Hi." He said in a low voice reaching for her hand to pick her up.

Brooke stood in front of him as he towered over her. "Hi." She said quietly. The man was creepy. He had an unshaven goatee and a mustache. He must have been at least 10 years old than her. He was wearing dark black jeans with a long black coat. It was incredibly warm for such an outfit.

"Where are you running to?" he asked.

"Um, my friends and I are just checking out the beach. They're not far behind me." She lied. She wanted to give him the impression she was not alone.

"That's funny," he said looking around. "I don't see anyone."

Brooke grew nervous just before she felt everything go black.


	10. Where Could She Be?

Ababy99-I just wanted to say thank you for reviewing all of my chapters.

**Chapter Ten-Where could she be?**

Nathan woke up freezing. He walked around the hotel room and found his sweatshirt. Haley was asleep in her bed and Tim was asleep on the couch. He could see Peyton and Jake sitting in the hot tub across the beach and he wondered what time it was. He glanced at the clock and noticed it was one o'clock. "Holy shit." He muttered. He walked out the door and almost ran directly into Lucas who was heading toward the hot tub. "Hey."

"Hey" Lucas replied. "Did Brooke sleep in your room last night?" he asked.

Nathan shook his head. "No. Why would she sleep in my room?" he asked defensively. "You're not still on this whole thing are you?"

Lucas shook his head. "No. I just haven't seen her. She didn't sleep in the room last night and Peyton said that she didn't sleep there either." He said. "I'm getting worried."

Nathan couldn't help but feel a knot in his stomach. Sure he was mad at her, but he was still worried about her. Part of him felt anger. He had been assuming she got drunk at a bar and left with some random guy. If that was the case however, she probably would be back by then. Brooke wasn't usually the type to stay with a guy she just hooked up with all day.

Lucas went to the hot tub to join Peyton and Jake. Nathan decided to walk around the beach for a while and see if he could find Brooke. When he finally made it back to his room he was even more worried. It was now 3 o'clock.

Haley was sitting in the sand reading a book while Peyton was sun tanning when Nathan found them. Lucas, Tim and Jake were at the bar getting drinks. "Peyton." Nathan called to her. "Come here."

Peyton jumped up from the sand and followed Nathan down the beach. "What's up?" she asked him. She could tell he was upset.

"I know you know about Brooke."

"What about Brooke?" she smirked. 

"Cut the crap. I know she told you about us. Even if you two weren't talking she would tell you. We both know that."

Peyton stepped back at his anger. "Yes Nathan, she told me. I actually think it's great."

Nathan sighed. "I can't find her." He explained. "She barged into the bathroom yesterday demanding sex. It was right after Haley told me Brooke slept with Chris. I kind of bitched her out. She took off, and that's the last time I saw her."

"Why did you bitch her out? That was a jackass move."

"Peyton."

"What? She made a mistake. She wasn't with you at that time anyway."

"I know. I just couldn't stand the thought of the second girl I ever loved wanting Chris too."

Peyton sighed. "Haley and Brooke." She wasn't upset that she wasn't included in that list. It was just a little awkward. "Brooke really cares about you. She told me. She wouldn't confess something like that unless she was serious about it. I mean come on, It's Brooke."

"I just wish I knew where she was."

"Me too." Peyton agreed. She too was starting to worry. It wasn't like Brooke to disappear by herself. She always needed someone by her side.

Brooke felt a sharp pain in her side when she woke up. The man she had seen the night before was lying in the bed next to her. "Oh God." She said aloud rolling over on the bed and throwing up on the ground.

She felt her body and realized she was still wearing her clothes. _Thank God. _She stood up quietly and looked around. The bed was in the center of a small shack. She could feel the white sand beneath her feet. The wood the shack was made out of was tilted to the side and looked as though it would fall at any second. There was a door in the front. If she could just make it to the door she could run for help.

She stepped over the man's shoe, when she saw a large rifle next to the bed. If she ran and he woke up he could easily shoot her. _Shit._ She looked at the small space which looked like it was made into a bathroom. There was no toilet, only a bucket and a roll of toilet paper. She closed her eyes fighting back tears.

She tip toed to the edge of the shack and pushed the piece of wood out of the doorway. Sunlight quickly filled the place and she saw the man moving on the bed. She jumped out of the shack and hurried to put the wood back in its place. As she looked out over the sand she could no longer hold back the tears. She was in sight of nothing but trees for miles.

It was starting to get dark when Nathan finally found a golf cart he could rent to drive around the island. "Can I drive?" Tim asked jumping in the cart.

"Not a chance." Nathan took the keys from him and pushed Tim to the side. He turned the cart on and drove as fast as possible in a random direction.

"Where are we going?" Tim asked. "We can't just drive randomly around this island hoping she'll just being walking somewhere."

Nathan ignored him and continued to drive as far as he could see. He saw a body off in the distance walking toward them. "Is that her?" he asked. She was still at least a half mile away from them.

"I think so." Tim said

As the two of them got closer to the woman they realized it wasn't Brooke. The woman however was running toward them in tears. "Oh my God!" she screamed. "Thank God you're here!" she jumped on the back of the cart. "Please get me out of here."

"What's wrong?" Nathan asked the woman. He was a little surprised by this.

"This man. He tired to kill me!" She cried. "Drive!"

Nathan took off in the golf cart back toward the city. "What the hell happened?" he asked her. He was driving as fast as possible.

"I was walking on the beach two nights ago when this man knocked me out. He took me back to his little shack and…" she started to cry. "He raped me."

Tim's eyes lit up. He was usually a jokester in serious situations but now he was incredibly pissed off. "It's okay," he said holding her hand. "Well find him."

"He tried to kill me. He chased me with a gun. I've been hiding in the trees for over a day now. I haven't eaten anything, and I have had no water." She told them. "When I saw you I knew it was a blessing from God."

Nathan hadn't spoken on the drive back to the city. He was getting really worried about Brooke now. What if she had wandered off and been taken by this man too? What if she wasn't as lucky?

Nassau officials questioned the woman time and time again before heading out onto the beach to find the man she described to them. Nathan was frantically pacing back and forth. Tim put his arm on his shoulder to calm him down. "It's okay man. We'll find her."

This was unusual for Tim. He was usually so shallow. "Thanks." Nathan said faking a smile. He watched as Tim helped the woman up from the chair she was sitting in and back out onto the beach.

"Nathan, I'm going to take her back to the hotel. I'll be back though okay?" Tim called.

Nathan just nodded. He was about too loose his cool if he didn't find Brooke soon.


	11. Her Favorite Flower Was An Orchid

**Chapter Eleven-Her favorite flower was an orchid**

The casket was decorated with white and purple flowers. Brooke loved orchids. She lay peacefully, smiling with her eyes open and staring at the world she no longer graced. Nathan laid his head down on the side of the casket and cried. He loved her. He couldn't admit it to her while she was alive, but right now he knew. He loved her more than life it's self.

Haley stood next to him, holding his hand tightly in hers. She had no idea how much he loved her.

Brooke suddenly moved. Her body jolted up from the casket and stared straight into Nathan's eyes. She looked down and saw Haley's hand entwined in Nathan's and swung her hand around to slap him. He fell to the ground. He felt Haley shaking him, telling him to wake up.

"Nathan, wake up!" she yelled for the last time.

Nathan jumped and found Haley staring at him. "Brooke?" he asked looking around. He was in his hotel room. He had been dreaming.

"Nathan they found Brooke!" Haley cried to him. "They found her."

Nathan looked at her still trying to decide if he was dreaming. "Is she okay?" he choked, deciding this was his real life.

"She's okay. She's not speaking to anybody." She explained. "They found her on the beach beaten up pretty badly. They thought she was dead. Apparently she had a lot of bruises but she refused to speak to anybody."

Nathan climbed out of the bed and threw on his dirty clothes from the night before. He was unsure how he had fallen asleep in the first place. When he got to the Nassau headquarters he found Brooke laying on a cot in the dark. She wasn't alone in the room. A Nassau guard was at the end of her bed and Peyton was next to him asleep in a chair. The guard quickly stood up when Nathan entered the room with Haley. Lucas, Tim and Jake weren't far behind them. He quickly made them leave the room so he could get identification from them. He told them they could only enter two at a time, and since Peyton was already in there, only one of them could go in.

Nathan told everyone he was going first. He sat down next to Peyton and looked at Brooke asleep on the cot. "Hey beautiful." He whispered. She didn't answer him. "I know you're sleeping and I don't want to wake you up. There were just a couple things I wanted to tell you." He could feel tears falling from his eyes. "I'm so sorry Brooke. I didn't realize it until this morning but, I love you. And I'm sorry for the way I treated you in the bathroom. Haley told me about you and Chris in New York. I was upset. I shouldn't have acted that way. I've just been so confused lately with my divorce, and with you, with graduation. I never wanted to admit it, but I'm just so scared Brooke. And then you disappeared. I thought I would never see you again. I can't handle loosing you!"

Nathan stopped talking and noticed Peyton awake watching him. "That was really nice of you." She said smiling. "She's going to be okay. The guard said she's in shock from what happened. When she snaps out of it she'll start talking again."

Nathan looked down at the bruises on her arms and legs. "Did he… rape her?" he choked.

Peyton shook her head no. "The guard said he just beat her up pretty badly. Apparently he must have thought he killed her so he stopped."

Nathan closed his eyes. He couldn't imagine the horrible thought of that man beating her to death. "Thank God she's okay."

Brooke didn't wake up until after everyone had come in and talked to her. When she sat up the only person in the room was Nathan. The guard had been standing outside the door having a conversation with the woman Nathan and Tim had found on the beach. They need more information to catch the guy.

Brooke looked into Nathan's eyes in pain. "Hi," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." He told her. "I'm the one that should be sorry."

She told him that she could hear him while he was talking to her earlier during her rest. She hadn't said anything because she felt like she could physically move. She agreed to talk to the guard to try and catch the guy. She just needed time.

"Do you mind taking me back to your hotel room?" she begged him holding his hand tightly in hers. Nathan agreed. Haley was in the room when Nathan set Brooke on his bed.

"Haley, do you mind staying with Lucas tonight?" he asked.

Haley rolled her eyes. "Unbelievable." She sighed.

Nathan was becoming really angry with her. "Have a little sensitivity." He scolded her as she left. "One of our friends almost died."

"One of your friends," Haley corrected him. "I know that something's going on between you two."

Brooke weakly looked at Haley in tears. "Haley, fuck off." She swore.

Haley stared back in surprise. She had never heard Brooke swear before. Not only that, she called her Haley instead of tutor girl. She shut the door behind her and left the room.

When Brooke woke up she expected to see Nathan. Instead she saw Lucas. He was holding her arm and touching her hair lightly. "Good morning."

"Lucas?" she asked confused. "What are you doing here?"

"Nathan went to grab you something to eat for when you woke up." He told her. "He asked me to stay with you."

"What was he thinking?" she joked.

"Hey." Lucas said pretending to be hurt. "I'm sorry for what I said to you the other day. I shouldn't have."

"It's okay." She accepted. "Regardless of what she did to me, I can't see Peyton get hurt like that."

Lucas nodded. "Peyton is in love with Jake still."

"What?"

"I can tell. I can see it in her eyes. The worst part is though. I'm not upset."

Nathan came back with donuts, cookies, toast, popcorn and cheez-its. "Good morning." He smiled interrupting the conversation the two of them were having.

"How long was I asleep?" Brooke asked.

"You slept all day and all night." Nathan told her. "You were exhausted."

"What a vacation." She muttered. "I'm sorry."

"Don't even say that." Lucas scolded.

"Where is Peyton?"

"She's asleep still." Lucas told her. "She's really beat. She stayed with you as long as possible. She's been really great about this."

"Thank her for me?" she asked him. Lucas nodded and left the room so Nathan could be alone with her.

"Nathan." Brooke whispered. "Can we just stay in the room all day?" she asked softly. "I don't really feel like going anywhere."

"We can." Nathan told her, "But first you're going to have to talk to the guard." Brooke agreed, even though that was the last thing she wanted to do.


	12. And This Was It The End

**Chapter Twelve-And this was it.**

A single red rose lay on the Brooke's bed when she entered the hotel room. She had spent the entire previous day lying in Nathan's hotel room with him. They had hardly spoken, just spent time together. Brooke had talked to the guard and told him the whole story. They were searching for the man, but unsure if they would find him.

She was feeling unusually better now. She was surprised she wasn't more emotionally broken up over the situation. She had talked the rest of her friends into staying for the rest of the trip and trying to forget the incident. They had wanted to take her home, but she insisted.

Brooke reached down and picked up the rose with a smile. Lucas stood watching her from the bathroom. She was gorgeous. Her hair was curled and hung below her shoulders. She was wearing a short black silk dress. She wore sandals with straps crossing all the way up her legs. She was smiling. "Who is this from?" she asked him staring at her.

"It's from Nathan." He said sadly. He wished it had been from him. He could tell that Brooke and Nathan had something going, and part of him began to accept that fact. He had broken up with Peyton the evening before. Peyton took is surprisingly well. She explained to him that she wasn't in love with him, and that her heart had always belonged to Jake. Lucas understood that, because even though the girl in front of him was in love with his brother, his heart belonged to her.

Brooke smiled again. This time his heart melted. He wanted to so much for her to be smiling because of him, but he knew that would never happen. "He was here?" she asked. She walked over to him and adjusted his tie. Everyone had agreed to go out for a nice dinner.

Lucas nodded. He grabbed his wallet off the dresser and followed Brooke out the door.

Haley walked down the sand toward the bar where everyone planned to meet. She was wearing a knee length kaki skirt and a black tank top. Her hair was pulled back into a low pony tail, and she was wearing flat black sandals. She reached Lucas's side and decided she was going to stick with him for the night. She hadn't hung out with him in quite some time.

Peyton and Jake were waiting patiently on bar stools laughing with each other. Peyton had explained the situation with her and Lucas the night before. She told Jake how much she cared for him and he accepted her apology. They agreed to hang out as friends for the time being. Peyton didn't want to rush into anything else right away.

Jake smiled at her slightly. She was wearing a white dress. It was flowing around the knees and sleeveless. It looked great on her. Her hair was pulled back with pins and she wore the sandals Brooke had given her.

Jake had watched her over the passed few days with everything that happened with Brooke. Peyton really cared about Brooke and was doing everything she could to be there for her. He admired this. She was wonderful and he would give anything to go back to the way their relationship was before he left again.

Nathan and Brooke walked down to the bar holding hands. Brooke was laughing slightly but holding one arm across her chest. Peyton knew she was worried about the obvious bruises covering her body. It didn't matter how bad they were, she looked great.

Everyone noticed Tim not far behind them. They were surprised to see him holding the arm of a girl not too much older than them. Lucas immediately recognized her as the woman rescued from the beach. She looked gorgeous. Nobody had noticed before when she was tattered, crying and bruised. She had straight light blonde hair and perfect blue eyes. She was wearing a pink sundress and really high sandals. She was smiling and holding onto Tim as they approached.

"Wow." Haley muttered. "Tim with a girl, and Nathan with Brooke, who would have ever thought this would happen?" she asked Lucas.

Lucas shook his head. "I have no idea."

The dinner was the nice. It was their last night in the Bahamas. Everyone sat at a large round table laughing, joking and genuinely happy. Nathan noticed Haley secretly checking her cell phone for service every few minuets. He knew she was trying to talk to Chris, but for the first time, he just didn't care.

A man approached the table and spoke directly to Brooke. She had hardly recognized the man as the guard. He was no longer wearing uniform. He smiled at her and bent down to her level. "We found him."

"You did?" Brooke asked happily. "That's great."

The man nodded. "He's in custody. It looks like the two of you were the only victims." He said glancing at the woman with Tim. "We caught him just in time."

"That's great." Brooke repeated

Nathan looked at Brooke who held tightly onto his hand as they ate and knew he could never be happier than this. She was perfect.

**The End-Hope You Liked It!-Brittney**


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